Beautiful Boy

Just returned from visiting my daughter and my first grandchild my first thoughts are of John Lennon's "Beautiful Boy"

He is called George after my late father, which is very touching

I feel my life is going to change, in many ways!

Normandy - Day 4

We decided to head further east but we ended up getting lost on the Caen peripherique before finally finding our way to Merville battery. Then onto Pegasus bridge and its museum. Finally a diversion to Hillman on the way back to avoid Caen.

The impressive C-47 Dakota restored to its original D_Day camo and markings

The bunkers are the same as Longues sur Mer but each one houses exhibits on the taking of the battery

Not sure about the relevenance of the 5.5" gun but it is positioned in one of the original gun positions used before the bunkers were added

Another view

Typical exhibit with a para jeep

Map of operations east of the Orne river

Onto the Pegasus Bridge Memorial Museum and a reproduction Horsa.

Bailey Bridge and the original Pegasus bridge behind

Centaur

The original Pegasus bridge

View across the new Pegasus bridge over the Caen canal

Cafe Gondree

Pak 38 50mm position

New Pegasus bridge raised

Churchill tank at "Hillman" WN17

Normandy - Day 3

Today we were travelling eastward to the impressive remains of the Longues sur Mer battery and then the remains of the Mulberry Harbour at Arromanches.

A Russian Putilov 76mm field gun captured in 1941 then used as part of the Longes sur Mer battery defences

Gun bunker

Interior view

Next bunker with useful cyclists for scale

Ditto

All four bunkers

The observation bunker, no longer accessible as it is starting to slip down the cliff, They filmed some scenes from "the Longest Day" here.

The view across to the Mulbery harbour remains

Final view of the bunkers and the Normandy coast cycle track

Arromaches view back to the Longues sur Mer battery

View along the shore, the weather was pretty wild.

The closest pontoon

Free French sherman tank on the east side of Arromanches, apparently part of the 2ieme Division Blindee landed here.

A useful map of the "British" beaches

A view of the Phoenix caissons

A final view of Arromanche, taken from the east looking west

Normandy - Day 1 and 2

On Day 1 I left Portsmouth at 8am on the Ouistram ferry. Arriving I had to negotiate the Caen peripherque to get to our accomodation near Port en Bassin stopping off at a supermarket on the way. That was enough for one day.

Day 2 was Omaha - started with the American Cemetery then down to the eastern enf of the beach, but the tide was in so I could appreciate how difficult it became to get off the beach. Then onto Pointe du Hoc another site managed by the American Battle Monuments Commission (ABMC). Finally finished with a visit to the west end of the beach

American Cemetery

Pointe du Hoc fortification plan

Another plan

On the Pointe, very crumbly rock, not good for climbing

Western end of Omaha as the tide begins to recede. Back towards Pointe du Hoc

Along the beach

Fort Nelson

Another bus journey out for Portsmouth plus a 30 minute hike took me to the Royal Armouries Museum at Fort Nelson on the ridge overlooking Portsmouth. The downside on the day I visited was they were shuffling arond the exhibits in the main courtyard ready for "Standing with Giants" so I didn't get chance to view them. So some highlights

Napoleonic French 6pdr cannon from 1815

A Burmese Mortar modelled like a dog

Chinese? cannon resembling a dragon

The main hall with lots of bits including 2 sections of the Iraqi supergun. THe 88mm and 3.7" AA guns were together allowing a useful comparison of features.

Portchester Castle

A short bus ride out from Portsmouth took me to Portchester Castle. It is still an impressive example of a Roman Saxon shore fort, which was later incorporated into a Medieval Castle, before ending up as a Napoleonic POW camp.